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QUILLS & QUEUES Quills & Queues: Ashland's visual arts tradition in decline Comment By Jeffrey Gillespie For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By Jeffrey Gillespie For the Tidings Posted Jun. 30, 2016 at 5:52 PM By Jeffrey Gillespie For the Tidings Posted Jun. 30, 2016 at 5:52 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Quills & Queues: Oregon Center for the Arts in Ashland a hub for multiple media... • Quills & Queues: Washington couple show whimsical works at Hanson Howard... • Prominent local gallery to close at end of month • The fine art of retirement » Social News One of the longtime draws of Ashland has been that it is considered something of a "gallery town." As a longtime gallerist in Santa Fe before my move to the Pacific Northwest, I admit that I am spoiled when it comes to the gallery experience. Santa Fe had, literally, hundreds of galleries in 2010 when I left to rejoin my family in the Rogue Valley. Every conceivable type of art was available in Santa Fe. My particular area of specialty was postwar American modern art from 1945 to about 1970, but you could also see and purchase a major Remington bronze, a Roberto Matta, a Jeff Koons, an important pre-Colombian proto-Nazca tapestry, or even a small Picasso or Renoir, all within a walkable area of perhaps 2 miles. So in coming to our wonderful hamlet, I had not expected another Santa Fe. However, when I arrived, I had been somewhat pleased to see that there were a number of viable galleries in the city, the cornerstone of which (at the time) was the respectable Davis & Cline Gallery in the Railroad District, where John Davis and his gallery director, the discreetly famous Chandra Holsten (herself a Santa Fe transplant with a long, blue-chip pedigree as co-owner of the vaunted Holsten Gallery in Santa Fe, which is still going strong after nearly 40 years) held court, surrounded by luminaries such as Hiroshi Yamano, Linda Ethier and, of course, that inevitable court jester of Pacific Northwest glass artists, Dale Chihuly. On the other side of town, Hanson Howard Gallery, led by Judy Howard, is the oldest game in town, handling a more crafty mix of regional artists to great effect and with apparent success, based on their longevity. As of 2016, one of those two galleries has closed. Despite Davis having put his gallery on the market at a very reasonable price in 2013, there were no takers; surprising indeed, since by all outward appearances the gallery looked like a money-spinner. Hanson Howard remains, and Howard has taken on a new partner, Elan Chardin. However, in addition to Davis & Cline, Illahe Gallery in the Railroad District has closed. So has Frank Phillips, a longtime favorite for pottery enthusiasts. Blue Heron Gallery, a longtime player, has gone the way of the dodo. J. Ellen Austin, owner of Jega Gallery, also in the Railroad District, has died, and the Thomas Lee Gallery, which specializes in the art of Dr. Seuss, is up for sale. Even the Treasure Chest Trading Post, which was located on North Main Street, (although more of a gift shop than a gallery) has shuttered its doors after a short couple of years in business. By any stretch of the imagination, the Ashland art scene is suffering, and it seems to be doing so more than the public is willing to notice. While alternative spaces and studios seem to be doing reasonably (if only because they are often run out of homes, or cooperative spaces that do not have to take the rental overhead hit that galleries are burdened with, or are subsidized by local wealthy patrons such as Lloyd Haines) traditional gallery spaces are dying at an alarming rate. Why? There are a few major factors. One, the collecting class (currently made up mostly of Boomers) is scaling down and is no longer collecting larger artworks, having already filled their walls and other areas of their homes with art. Two, young collectors are not as educated on how to buy good art, nor are they inclined to spend as freely on art as their parents were, since the new generation is all about keeping their overheads down with smaller homes and tighter purse strings. Three, everyone is still suffering under the psychological trauma of the 2008/2009 economic meltdown. In the gallery world, it has become smart business to water down "true" fine art galleries so as to capture the largest possible number of clients and, as such, there is a lot of design and decor that is masquerading as fine art. Ashland is no exception to this rule, and if you cast your eyes over the membership of the Ashland Gallery Association, it is peppered with wineries, restaurants, even bedding stores and optometrists; none of them even remotely associated with what fine art used to be. It would be wonderful to see a younger crowd of new gallery owners come into town and revitalize the grand tradition of the bricks and mortar gallery, but it's not a likely scenario. It's far more likely that this important aspect of being seen as a relevant art town (having a healthy assemblage of thriving visual art establishments where collectors and dealers can assemble to buy and talk about fine art) will not reemerge anytime soon. That's a pity, but it seems to be a fact of the gallery business these days; for now, at least we have a thriving theater and food scene to keep us salivating. Ashland resident Jeffrey Gillespie is a Daily Tidings columnist, arts reviewer and freelance writer. Email him at gillespie.jeffrey @gmail.com. By Jeffrey Gillespie For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By Jeffrey Gillespie For the Tidings Posted Jun. 30, 2016 at 5:52 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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